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Launch EMODnet Atlas of European Marine Life

Added on 2018-12-19 08:50:58 by Claus, Simon

EMODnet Biology is proud to unveil a new and innovative showcase of exemplar marine biological data products.

Launched on 19 December 2019, the European Atlas of Marine Life presents a range of data products including tools, models and maps, illustrating the diverse range of outputs that can be generated from EMODnet Biology hosted data.

Since the preparatory phase in 2009, the 22 partners of EMODnet Biology have collaborated to create an unparalleled repository of biological data, underpinned by the EurOBIS data infrastructure, allowing open-access for a wide-range of stakeholders across Europe.

The available data and products are structured around the biological Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) facilitating global interoperability and contributing to the aims of UN Sustainable Development Goal 14, the relevant Aichi Biodiversity Targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the activities focused around the UN Decade of Ocean Science (2021-2030).

Hosted on the EMODnet Biology website (http://www.emodnet-biology.eu/about-atlas)) the products are the result of two years of focussed activity within Phase 3 of EMODnet Biology. Through an iterative process of end-user engagement and focussed technical workshops the initial 14 data products (http://www.emodnet-biology.eu/toolbox/en/gallery/) represent a wide-range of demand-led data products, that help to answer fundamental and policy-driven questions related to managing the natural and anthropogenic impacts in European waters.

EMODnet Biology is committed to supporting the FAIR principles (Findable - Accessible - Interoperable - Reusable) through the data and resulting products. As such all data is open and code and methodologies used in the creation of the data products are hosted in the EMODnet shared software repository (https://github.com/EMODnet), from this site the data product’s code can be accessed and shared with the community, ensuring transparency in the creation process and increasing trust in the resulting products.

The volume of data and range of products accessible through the Atlas of European Marine Life will continue to grow. The next two years will see a continuation of the EMODnet Biology project, and further engagement with key stakeholders in the ‘triple helix’ of academia, industry and the policy sectors. This ongoing, collaborative approach will ensure the relevance of key products to address societal challenges and support sustainable blue growth both within Europe and globally.

This deliverable was being made possible through close collaboration between EMODnet Biology and Lifewatch Marine, Marinespecies.org, Marineregions.org and EurOBIS.